Brexit is likely to lead to the largest shift in Britain's economic orientation in living memory. Some have argued that leaving the EU will enable Britain to revive markets in Commonwealth countries with which it has long-standing historical ties. Their opponents maintain that such claims are based on forms of imperial nostalgia which ignore the often uncomfortable historical trade relations between Britain and these countries, as well as the UK's historical role as a global, rather than chiefly imperial, economy. Forging a British World of Trade explores how efforts to promote a 'British World' system, centred on promoting trade between Britain and the Dominions, grew and declined in influence between the 1880s and 1970s. At the beginning of the twentieth century many people from London, to Sydney, Auckland, and Toronto considered themselves to belong to culturally British nations. British politicians and business leaders invested significant resources in promoting trade with Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa out of a perception that these were great markets of the future. However, ideas about promoting trade between 'British' peoples were racially exclusive. From the 1920s onwards, colonized and decolonizing populations questioned and challenged the basis of British World networks, making use of alternative forms of international collaboration promoted firstly by the League of Nations, and then by the United Nations. Schemes for imperial collaboration amongst ethnically 'British' peoples were hollowed out by the actions of a variety of political and business leaders across Asia and Africa who reshaped the functions and identity of the Commonwealth.

About the Author
David Thackeray's work has explored the political culture of modern Britain and its involvement in trade networks. Having undertaken his PhD at Cambridge he is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Exeter. With Andrew Thompson and Richard Toye, he has edited Imagining Britain's Economic Future, c.1800-1975: Trade, Consumerism, and Global Markets (2018).

Reviews
David Thackeray has written an authoritative and compelling account of the emergence, growth, and decline of the "British World"; that is, the networks of trade and communication between the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa, between the late nineteenth century and the 1970s. * David M. Higgins, Journal of British Studies *



Book Information
ISBN 9780198816713
Author David Thackeray
Format Hardback
Page Count 248
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 532g
Dimensions(mm) 242mm * 164mm * 24mm